The Plots Against Hitler

"[A] gripping look at a historical counternarrative that remains relevant and disturbing." -- Kirkus Reviews

"Superb." -- Publishers Weekly


The first definitive account of the anti-Nazi underground in Germany

"A riveting narrative of the organization, conspiracy, and sacrifices made by those who led the resistance against Hitler. Orbach deftly analyzes the mixed motives, moral ambiguities and organizational vulnerability that marked their work, while reminding us forcefully of their essential bravery and rightness. And he challenges us to ask whether we would have summoned the same courage." -- Charles S. Maier, professor of history, Harvard University, and author of Among Empires

In 1933, Adolf Hitler became chancellor of Germany. A year later, all political parties but the Nazis had been outlawed, freedom of the press was but a memory, and Hitler's dominance seemed complete. Yet over the next few years, an unlikely cadre of conspirators emerged--schoolteachers, politicians, theologians, even a carpenter--who would try repeatedly to end the Fuhrer's genocidal reign. This dramatic account is history at its most suspenseful, revealing the full story of those noble, ingenious, and doomed efforts.
Orbach's fresh research offers profound new insight into the conspirators' methods, motivations, fears, and hopes. We've had no idea until now how close they came--several times--to succeeding. The Plots Against Hitler fundamentally alters our view of World War II and sheds bright--even redemptive--light on its darkest days.